Meet your Magnet Educators

In my current role at Jack Yates Senior High School, I serve as Magnet Coordinator and have the privilege to recruit new students for the Magnet programs in the School Of Communications and Maritime Academy.  I develop and execute the goals of the Magnet Program to ensure rich educational experiences. Rigor and relationships are keys to driving high-achieving academia. I also collaborate with classroom teachers to ensure students receive rigor in instruction, and in their demonstration of learning.  I support multiple initiatives on campus including Title 1, Family And Community Engagement, Transportation, Volunteers on campus, Head Volleyball Coach, Assistant Basketball Coach, Student Transfer Analyst, and serve as one of the web masters.

My passion and commitment to educating our future leaders of tomorrow, comes from all of my coaches and teachers who invested in me with their love, time, and resources. I was blessed to have some amazing coaches and mentors who saw something in me that made me worth saving. I am a product of my environment… tough and relentless. My environment provided many opportunities to grow or disintegrate. It is because of my faith and my coaches that I am refined and am able to use my experiences and thirst for knowledge to learn, teach, and support students, families, and this historic community.

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Students can call me Professor DeJohn, or "Doc" as I just completed my doctorate in Educational Leadership at the University of Houston in May 2024. I have been a professor for over eight years at Lone Star College and Houston Community College, and in the audio/video production field for over three decades. During this time, I also served as a public school teacher and administrator for over 18 years. Most recently, I was the Director of Education at Houston Public Media - PBS Channel 8. But I returned to the classroom at Jack Yates High School in 2023 - 2024, where I was previously the JY Cinema teacher from 2020 to 2022 - where we won first place at the UIL Film Festival in Austin two years in a row!

I have a Master of Fine Arts (MFA) in Digital Cinema. I also serve as a board member for the Southwest Alternative Media Project (SWAMP). And way back when, I was the first white band member at Jack Yates High School in 1981! So, I am ultra dedicated to helping young Lions reach their fullest potential for a great life and a bright future so they can perhaps return to 3rd Ward one day and keep Jack Yates High School a strong pillar in our community!

I have very high expectations for my scholars in JY Cinema - especially my high school students taking dual credit college classes as they will be expected to do at least double the work. I demand the highest rigor I demand of my JY Cinema college students to prepare them for what is next in life. In the real world of production, you will be required to work with a crew that counts on you. If you are absent, you are responsible for checking Canvas and to ensure your crew is caught up as well in missing assignments. 

The latest book I read was "The Singularity is Nearer - When We Merge with AI" by Ray Kurzwell.  Artificial Intelligence is the future, it is here, and our scholars must be ready to lead in this area. Therefore, it will be a key component in this class. Here we go!